Transcendence 4

Eighteen: As Bad as Sodom?

Things were going from bad to worse for Israel. A Levite who lived in the hill country of Ephraim took a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah as his wife.(Here again mixing tribes was forbidden in God's laws.) It didn't take very long for him to realize she was bein unfaithful to him. When she told him she was unhappy she left him and went back to her father's house in Bethlehem, which was the tribe of Judah. After about four months her husband went back to her town and tried to persuade her to return with him. Though she had been unfaithful he still loved her. He had with him his servant and two donkeys. The girl took her Levite husband into her father's home and her father gladly welcomed him. He asked the Levite to stay, so he did for three days. They ate and drank and enjoyed that time.

On the forth day they got up early and he prepared to leave, but the girl's father said to his son-in-law, "Refresh yourself with something to eat and then you can go." So the two of them sat down to eat and drink together. Afterward the girl's father said, "Please stay tonight and enjoy yourself." Being persuaded, he stayed another night. On the fifth morning he rose to go and the girl's father said, "Refresh yourself, wait until afternoon!" ( Again trying to prolong the visit.)

Later that day when the Levite got up to go with his concubine and his servant his father-in-law said, "Now look, it's almost evening. Spend the night here, the day is almost over. Stay and leave tomorrow morning."  But unwilling to stay another night he went ahead and left, heading toward Jerusalem with his two donkeys, his servant and his concubine. When they approached the city the girl asked to spend the night there but he refused saying he did not want to stay with aliens - because at that time Jerusalem was called Jebus and some of the people in the city were not Israelites. The Levite wanted to travel on and try to reach Gibeah in Benjamin that night.

When they reached Gibeah where the tribe of Benjamin lived they sat at the city square, but no one took them into his home. That evening an old man from the hill country of Ephraim who was living in Gibeah among the Benjamites was coming in from his work in the fields. He saw the Levite and his concubine at the city square and asked, "Where are you going? Where did you come from?"

The Levite answered, "We are leaving Bethlehem in Judah to go to Ephraim where I live. No one here has invited us into their home to rest. We have both straw and fodder for our donkeys and bread and wine for ourselves and your servants. We don't need anything."

The old man welcomed them to his home.

(In the ancient Middle East, people took hospitality very seriously. When the Levite sat down in the city square he expected the townspeople (his relatives) to offer him a place to stay. Inhospitable locals was one ominous sign. Later, only an old man from Ephraim offered lodging. The old man knew that traditionally hospitality was important. Unfortunately, he took women much less seriously...)

After his guests had washed their feet they had something to eat and drink. While they were enjoying themselves some of the wicked men of the city surrounded the house. They pounded on the door and shouted to the old man who owned the house, "Bring out the man who came to your house so we can have sex with him."

The man went outside and said, "No, don't be so vile! This man is my guest, don't do this disgraceful thing. Look, here is my virgin daughter, and the man's concubine. I will bring them out to you so you can use them and do whatever you wish. But to his man, don't do such a disgraceful thing." (This response was almost identical to Lot's response when a hostile mob wanted to rape him on the eve of Sodom's destruction. This could indicate Israel had become as bad as Sodom.)

The men would not listen to him. So the Levite man took his concubine and sent her outside to them. They raped her and abused her throughout the night, and at dawn they let her go. At day-break the woman went back to the house where her master was staying, fell down at the door and lay there until daylight. When her master got up in the morning and saw her at the doorway with her hands on the threshold he said to her, "Get up! Lets go!" But there was no answer. T

Though the man knew she was dead, he put her on his donkey and set out for home.

When he reached his home, he took a knife and cut up his concubine, limb by limb, into twelve parts and sent them into all the areas of Israel. Every one who saw it said, "Such a thing has never been seen or done in all Israel's history. What should we do?" For they knew the message was either a direct threat or a cry for help.

(Life Question: Have you noticed the ways of the world around you have gotten worse over time? Do you think it is because God's commands are being ignored? Forgotten? If people would all turn to God things would be so much better - God wants us to have a good life but by giving free will people are not eager to choose Him. Maybe things just haven't gotten bad enough for them to cry out for forgiveness. Yet. )